Cardiology Technician

Agnieszka's job title is Trainee Cardiac Physiologist at the University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust

What I do

I work as a trainee Cardiac Physiologist in Non-invasive Cardiology, which is a large hospital that also performs heart surgery and lots of other advance surgery and treatments across all departments. My role involves performing lots of diagnostic tests on people’s hearts that help with their diagnosis and treatment. As a department, we see outpatient and inpatients from different backgrounds, and both adults and children.

How I became a technician

I completed my secondary education in Poland, where I studied Chemistry, Biology and English. When my mum moved to England with my sister, I just came over for the summer (as I’d been accepted at a Polish university to study Biomedical Engineering) but loved it so much that I decided to stay.

I initially started working in a hospital admin post, then came across this job. I wanted to be totally fluent in English, so I surrounded myself with English friends so I could build on the ‘Advanced English’ I had learned in Poland, which I realised was not that advanced as I had to learn all kinds of different accents in my job.

I am currently studying at the University of the West of England (UWE) in Bristol, and I go there three times a year for a week.

I also study online and attend online lectures once a week. I’m doing the Apprenticeship Degree in Healthcare Sciences, specialising in Cardiac Physiology. Southampton Hospital works in partnership with UWE for several apprenticeships.

A typical day in my
working life

Every day is different, which I love. I work Monday to Friday with outpatients in regular working hours. A typical day starts with a team meeting, talking about the workload and coming up with a plan for the day.

Since becoming a trainee physiologist, one day a week is my designated study day, and some days I train in different areas such as exercise tests, heart ultrasounds, pacemaker checks and assisting in a theatre environment.

Every day we see patients with known heart conditions or new patients with suspected problems. At the end of each day, we prepare the following day’s clinic, so it’s all ready for use, including deep cleaning the equipment. I also like to reflect on the day I’ve had from the people I’ve seen, to what I’ve experienced.

I have great job satisfaction. It’s great to know that you’re helping people and making a positive change to someone’s life.

When I first joined the team, I was more of an introvert. Over time I have become more extroverted and learned how to adapt to different patients. I love the fact I play a part in helping people get better.

A little more about
my everyday role

The best bits about working in a team

There are 70 people in the team in the Cardiology unit, so it’s a huge team. The team is made of technicians, and cardiac physiologists - some that are highly specialised, and more trainees just like me. I always feel supported, and I learn many new things from my colleagues daily. I am fortunate to have such an incredible team. I have made good friends here and we all enjoy going out for food and sport activities outside of work.

The equipment I use

We have a lot of different devices we use within my department. We use ECG machines, we apply portable ECG machines for patients to take home, which is then analysed on our special computers. We also have portable blood pressure monitors. The areas I’m going to train at more in the upcoming year have a special ultrasound machine for heart scans (just like baby scans) and special equipment to have a look at patients’ pacemakers. Pacemakers are small devices that help the heartbeat when it goes too slow or even too fast!

The most exciting thing I’ve achieved so far in my job

I’ve also done a Society for Cardiological Science and Technology (SCST) diploma in the analysis of heart rhythms, which I passed. The lecturer nominated me for a rising star award within SCST, and I won.

The next steps in my career journey

My advice to a younger person would be to take your time, try to do different work experiences if possible and do your research. Don’t rush or give in to pressure to do stuff straight away and do what interests you. There are other options than just going to university. Apprenticeships are great as you study and work at the same time and get paid too.

The advice I'd give
to someone younger

My advice to a younger person would be to take your time, try to do different work experience if possible and do your research. Don’t rush or give into pressure to do stuff straightaway and do what interests you. There are other options than just going to university. Apprenticeships are great as you study and work at the same time and get paid too.

Find out more about this role

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Agnieszka Sawicka